The Next Best Book Club discussion

Melissa ... loved The Storyteller!

The Quiet Game by Greg Iles – 3***
This is a fast-paced mystery thriller with more than its share of action and violence, and a HIGH body count. Iles kept the tension high and kept me turning pages, but I felt the entire conspiracy was unnecessarily complicated. The two side stories mostly just padded the page count. I’ll give Iles credit though for writing some of the “best” smarmy, power-hungry villains to be found between book covers. I wanted to strangle them myself and almost all of them got what they deserved.
Link to my full review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I just finished, and ADORED, The Wise Man's Fear, the second book of The Kingkiller Chronicle - 5★s.

Here is my review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Melissa wrote: "I also started the storyteller by jodi picoult"

I loved this book and will be rereading it for my book group.

I just started it-so far it is an easy read. It's a big book-but it keeps my interest.

Just started the Expanse Series. The first book, Leviathan Wakesis great so far (I'm about half way through). The world building is exceptional if that interests anybody. You really feel like you're there.

Whistling Past the Graveyard by Susan Crandall – 3.5 ***
Set in 1963 Mississippi, this coming-of-age novel also treats some serious subjects – domestic abuse, alcohol abuse, racism, and child abuse. Nine-year-old Starla is a compelling narrator, even if her understanding of issues isn’t always complete. It was a very fast read, and I was interested from beginning to end.
This is a Link to my full review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I've just started

I have finally finished after having it stare at my face for almost a month. i have decided that i needed a break and so i picked up an easy read (or at least i hope). So now i am reading and i really like it so far.

I'm reading Three Bargains which is an ARC and due to be published in August.

Witness by Karen Hesse – 3.5***
A novel in free verse lets eleven residents of a small town in Vermont bear witness to what happens when the Ku Klux Klan arrives in their town in 1924. Evocative and powerful. However, the odd syntax Hesse uses for six-year-old Esther’s voice is really off-putting. I dropped a half-star as a result.
Link to my full review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Starting Skeletons by Jane Fallon.

I've been somewhat on a reading roll and so far this month I have finished 12 books. Yesterday I picked up a real oldie published originally in 1966, Five Smooth Stones. It's a rather long book, just right for the summer.

I just finished reading The Scandalous Duchess, a fun read with a few flaws - 3.5★s.

Here is my review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I finished Percy Jackson and the Titan's Curse the other day. Now I'm reading the next book in the series, Battle of the Labyrinth.

Just finished Dave Eggers' "The Circle." Was trying to figure out what I wanted to read next when I came across this site: http://www.bookvibe.com. It builds personalized book recommendations for users. It's pretty cool and helped me discover the book I'm reading now—Teju Cole's "Open City"—which I love!

Gave up on Five Smooth Stones but began reading The Perfume Collector.

Decided to read a couple of short stories on my Kindle next. The Sway of Disaster and A Tale of 3 Witches

Starting Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro.

Just finished The Storied Life Of A.J. Fikryd. What a wonderful book. Gave it a 5.

I just finished Mistborn: The Final Empire and am now a card-carrying Brandon Sanderson fan! What a great start to his Mistborn trilogy - 4.5★s.

Here is my review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Linda wrote: "Just finished The Storied Life Of A.J. Fikryd. What a wonderful book. Gave it a 5."

Wow I bet you loved this title as much as I did. I think it may be my fave book for this year.

In addition ot reading The Perfume Collector in real book form, I am also listening to Once Upon a Time, There Was You, and have just added The Book of Secrets on my I PAD. Enjoying all of them although I don't know which to read first.

Just starting The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway for a classic group read.

Pamela wrote: "I just started Me Before You. I'm excited because I've heard it's very good. Hoping it lives up to all the recommendations."

I hope you like it - it's one of the best books I've read this year.

I have finished reading and and loved both of them. I am now working my way through and i don't know if i will like this book or not. I am hoping to go to the library by Thursday if not Friday. I think i am putting away and i could maybe read it later. i just can't seem to get into it like i thought i would.

I'm going to start this afternoon.

I'm enjoying Somebody tell Aunt Tillie She's Dead.

Am currently reading , , and . The first two are really captivating. The last is a bit ho hum. Read Devil in the White City and liked it better (so far) than Clara.

Why did you compare Devil in the White City to Clara. I think they are so totally different.

Read Still Life with Bread Crumbs and while I usually love Anna Quindlen's books, this one didn't do it for me.

well i finally finished reading and it was a cute read but not that good. I went to the library yesterday and couldn't find a few books on my list but i did get some good ones. I am currently reading five books at once right now. I am reading , , , , and . They are all very good so far.

I added an audio to my Kindle read. It is The Postmistress by Sarah Blake.

Linda wrote: "Am currently reading , , and . The first two are really ca..."

I read All the Light We Cannot See a few months ago, what a wonderfully written book. Love the story and gave it 5 stars. Sounds like you're enjoying it too.

Right now I'm reading Home Leave and Tea with Emma which is a novella.

"I read All the Light We Cannot See a few months ago, what a wonderfully written book. Love the story and gave it 5 stars. Sounds like you're enjoying it too."

I will be reading this book shortly.

My last reads have been:
The Visionist that was not what I was expecting. It didn't really catch my attention,
The Rosie Project that was so funny and enjoyable!
Y that was just ok,
Orphan Train, a really great historical fiction,
and The Silkworm, another incredible Cormoran Strike novel, really recommendable.
Now I'm working on Olive Kitteridge and not really enjoying it. I don't know why it won a pulitzer!

Finished The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway very early this morning. Good writing, but definitely does not make me want to see a bull fight. Interestingly enough, last Sunday's movie on MeTV was Columbo: A Matter of Honor, about a Mexican matador. Serendipity?

Read a short story by Jodi Picoult this morning, Where There's Smoke. First time I've read anything by her. It was okay, though the ending was a bit abrupt and left me wanting to know more about how events tied together.

Now starting: Daring to Dream by Nora Roberts.

I've just started

I'm in the middle of The Abominable. It's okay, but after reading Waiting for the Barbarians, which tells a sophisticated story in 150 pages, I can't help but feel like The Abominable should be 200 pages shorter.

I am currently reading Sycamore Row by John Grisham

The Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan

Someday, Someday Maybe by Lauren Graham – 2.5**
Franny Banks has just six months left to make it as an actress in New York before her self-imposed deadline expires. There was a time in my life when I would probably have enjoyed this “growing up, looking for myself” kind of novel, but now I’m just irritated by Franny. Lauren Graham performs the audiobook herself. She’s pretty good at voicing the audio; she certainly understands the characters well. Basically, I think Graham should stick to acting and leave writing novels to other people.
This is a Link to my full review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I finished reading I Swear by Lane Davis on the way to Charleston yesterday and today i am reading a little wanting song and feast of fools. They are both pretty good so far but i have already read feast of fools and i am just catching up on the series so i can read the next book in the morganville vampire series since i only got up to #6.

Home Leave was a bit of a disappointment to me but Tea with Emma was a lite uncomplicated read. I'm reading the next one in the series Strike the Match. I'm just starting Blott on the Landscape which was a funny program on PBS.

Just finished Olive Kitteridge, and really didn't enjoy it. But in any case it will do a good discussion next week in my book club meeting.

I'm reading now Reconstructing Amelia and Blackbirds.

Paula, Defending Jacob is a great book! Hope you are enjoying it!

I'm listening to That Night by Chevy Steven which is interesting since I watched both seasons of Orange is the New Black and also just read the book. In addition I just began reading The Secret Life of Violet Grant by a new to me author Beatriz Williams. So far it's really good.

The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery – 4****
Somehow I never before read this fable that has become a classic of children’s literature. The author reminds us that grown-ups don’t understand things by themselves, and must rely on children to explain the truth of things. As he tells the story of how he came to leave his tiny planet and journey to Earth, the little prince expounds on love, loyalty, and the co-dependence of relationships. It has some very adult themes, told in a simple style.
Link to my full review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

My Own Country - Abraham Verghese
4****
This is Verghese's memoir of the time he spent working as an infectious disease specialist in a small East Tennessee town nestled in the Smoky Mountains. In 1985 the local hospital treated its first AIDS patient, and before long a crisis that had once seemed an “urban problem” had arrived in town to stay. Verghese is eloquent in describing his surroundings, patients and others in the town and surrounding area. It is informative, inspiring, tender, frightening, compassionate and memorable.
Link to my full review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Shutter Island - Dennis Lehane (Audio book performed by Tom Stechschultz)
4****
U.S. Marshall Teddy Daniels arrives at Ashecliffe Hospital for the Criminally Insane to investigate the reported escape of a dangerous patient. How could she leave the highly secure hospital? How could she get off the island? As he investigates, Teddy finds more questions than answers, and begins to fear that once he discovers the truth he will also become a prisoner. Fast-paced, suspenseful and frightening; Lehane keeps the reader guessing. The ending is simply chilling and chillingly simple. Tom Stechchultz does a fine job performing the audiobook. His voice seems spot on perfect for this narration
Link to my full review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

The Beautiful Mystery - Louise Penny
3***
The two dozen monks of Saint-Gilbert-Entre-les-Loups live a cloistered life in the woods of Quebec. But when their renowned choir director is murdered, the locked doors of the monastery must be opened to admit Inspector Gamache. For a book of this genre, this was a rather slow, deliberate and thoughtful work. While the plot may not be fast-paced it is intricate and complex. What most interested me were the characters, and Penny does a masterful job presenting them with all their strengths and weaknesses. I’ll definitely go back to book # 1 and read the series from the beginning.
Link to my full review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...